Playthings

ABSTRACT

A plaything is formed from a single sheet of material having a first pair of parallel interrupted hinge lines ( 10  and  11 ) afforded by spaced hinge portions ( 10 A,  10 B, and  11 A,  11 B), and a second pair of parallel interrupted hinge lines ( 12, 13 ) afforded by spaced hinge portions ( 12 A,  12 B and  13 A,  13 B), the second pair of parallel interrupted hinge lines ( 12, 13 ) being at right angles to the first pair of parallel interrupted hinge lines ( 10, 11 ), and the sheet being so cut as to permit folding of the sheet about each of the hinge lines ( 10, 11, 12  and  13 ).

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] This invention relates to playthings, and is particularlyconcerned with folding playthings.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

[0002] Picture puzzles and puzzles involving the inversion of geometricforms appeal to many people, often especially to children. They havebeen found to be an effective advertising medium and are regularly usedas promotional items, for example, in packets of food. There isaccordingly a constant demand for new and innovative, but simple,playthings, particularly folding playthings.

[0003] Many invertible linkages are available as toys or novelties.Examples are shown in European Patent Specifications Nos. 0 069 188 and0 787 514. Picture toys which display an inversion motion are shown inBritish Registered Design No. 2061816 and in British PatentSpecification No. 2 333 721. The manufacture of both these toys involveassembling and gluing, and it is an object of the present invention toprovide a simple plaything which can be produced from a single sheet ofmaterial and the manufacture of which does not involve any gluingoperation.

[0004] A fold-through picture puzzle which can be formed from a singlesheet of material, appropriately creased and incised, is disclosed inU.S. Pat. No. 5,735,520. A characteristic of this puzzle is, however,that it has a very large number of creases with the consequence that theobtaining of a fold-through motion is a complex procedure, i.e. thepuzzle is too complex for it to be a popular novelty or promotionalitem.

[0005] It is accordingly a further objection of the present invention toprovide a plaything which can be formed from a single sheet of materialin such manner as to provide a simple fold-through motion.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0006] According to the present invention there is provided a playthingformed from a single sheet of material having a first pair of parallelinterrupted hinge lines afforded by spaced hinge portions, and a secondpair of parallel interrupted hinge lines afforded by spaced hingeportions, the second pair of parallel interrupted hinge lines being atright angles to the first pair of parallel interrupted hinge lines, andthe sheet being so cut as to permit folding of the sheet about each ofthe hinge lines.

[0007] The plaything can preferably be inverted and returned to itsoriginal condition by folding of the sheet twice about each of the foldlines.

[0008] The sheet is preferably so cut as to divide it into eight zoneseach of which is connected by hinge portions to two other zones.

[0009] Cutting of the sheet may be effected by forming incisions in thesheet. The incisions may extend to points of intersection of the hingeportions.

[0010] Cutting of the sheet may alternatively be effected by forming anexcision in the sheet.

[0011] The sheet will normally be a relatively thin sheet of, forexample, paper or card but may have a definite thickness. For example,the sheet may be of wood, in which case the plaything is also a toy.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012]FIG. 1a shows a first form of plaything in accordance with thepresent invention,

[0013]FIG. 1b shows a plaything which includes a curvate excision,

[0014]FIG. 1c shows a plaything which includes a curvate incision,

[0015]FIGS. 2a to 2 g show further embodiments of the invention andprovide an indication of the variety of shapes which can be adopted,

[0016]FIGS. 3a to 3 c show yet further embodiments of the invention, and

[0017]FIGS. 4a to 4 h show a full cycle of folding operations of thefirst form of plaything.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0018]FIG. 1a shows a single sheet of a material which can, throughcreasing, moulding or any other process, become hinged alongpredetermined lines. Examples of suitable materials include paper,cardboard, polymers, cloth, laminates and wood.

[0019] The sheet of material shown in FIG. 1a is square and has twovertical interrupted hinge lines 10 and 11, and two horizontalinterrupted hinge lines 12 and 13. There are thus two pairs of parallelinterrupted hinge lines and the first pair of parallel interrupted hingelines 10 and 11 are at 90° to the second pair of parallel interruptedhinge lines 12 and 13.

[0020] Each interrupted hinge line 10, 11, 12, 13 includes two spacedcoaxial hinge portions 10A and 10B, 11A and 11B, 12A and 12B and 13A and13B respectively. For convenience, reference numerals 10, 11, 12 and 13as such are not shown in FIG. 1a though they will be referred to in thefollowing description.

[0021] The sheet of material shown in FIG. 1a is also formed with fourincisions 14, 15, 16 and 17. As shown the four incisions 14 to 17intersect at the centre of the square sheet of material and extendtowards the four corners of the sheet of material terminating at points18 to 21. Point 18 is at the intersection of hinge portions 10A and 12A.Point 19 is at the intersection of hinge portions 11A and 12B. Point 20is at the intersection between hinge portions 11B and 13B and point 21is at the intersection between hinge portions 10B and 13A.

[0022] It is to be noted from FIG. 1a that the hinge portions 10A to 13Bextend outwardly from the intersection points 18 to 21.

[0023] The square sheet of material can be folded along any one of thehinge lines 10, 11, 12 and 13, with a completed cycle of foldingoperations (as described below with reference to FIGS. 4a to 4 h)serving to effect a fold-through operation and complete inversion of thesheet.

[0024] The presented surface of the sheet can be considered as beingdivided into eight zones 22 to 29 each of which is connected by twohinge portions to two other zones. For example, zone 22 is connected byhinge portion 10A to zone 23 and is connected by hinge portion 12A tozone 25, while zone 28 is connected by hinge portion 10B to zone 27 andby hinge portion 11B to zone 29.

[0025] When folding is effected about hinge line 10, zones 22, 25 and 27can be turned through 180° relative to the remaining zones 23, 24, 26,28 and 29. In addition, after a folding operation has been effectedabout hinge line 10, a subsequent folding operation can then be carriedout about any one of the other hinge lines 11, 12 and 13, in the samedirection as folding about hinge line 10 was effected.

[0026] The presented surface of the sheet normally carries an image. Theimage may extend over all the zones 22 to 29 of the sheet, or the imagemay be confined to zones 23, 25, 26 and 28. An additional image orimages may be provided on the underside of the sheet. For example, theundersides of zones 23 and 28 may together bear an additional image, andthe undersides of zones 25 and 26 may together bear another additionalimage. One of such additional images may include parts which are on theundersides of zones 22, 24, 27 and 29.

[0027] Turning next to FIG. 1b, this shows a plaything which correspondsto that shown in FIG. 1a except that the incisions 14, 15, 16 and 17have been replaced by a continuous cut 30 which forms an opening 31 inthe centre of the sheet. The points 18, 19, 20 and 21 are within thearea of the opening 31 and are, therefore, not shown. In modificationsof the arrangement shown in FIG. 1b, one, two, three or all four of thepoints 18 to 21 are located on the line of the continuous cut 30. Thesheet of FIG. 1b is again divided into eight zones 22 to 29 by the twopairs of parallel interrupted hinge lines 10A to 13B, and the sheet canagain be folded as described above with reference to FIG. 1a.

[0028]FIG. 1c shows a further plaything which is again formed from asingle sheet of material formed with two pairs of parallel interruptedfold lines, as with the embodiment of FIG. 1a, but differs from theembodiment of FIG. 1a in that the four incisions 14, 15, 16 and 17 havebeen replaced by a single somewhat meandering curvate incision 32 whichstarts at point 20, passes through points 19 and 18, and finishes atpoint 21. The single sheet of material is again divided into eight zones22 to 29, each of which is connected by two hinge portions to two otherzones.

[0029] The embodiments shown in FIG. 2a to FIG. 2g are examplesproviding an indication of the versatility of the present invention anddemonstrating just some of the many visual transformable images whichmay be provided. Thus, FIG. 2a shows a circular sheet formed withincisions arranged at right angles to one another. FIG. 2b shows arectangular sheet formed with four intersecting incisions which are notat right angles to one another. FIG. 2c shows a plaything which bears arepresentation of a cat, while FIG. 2d shows a sheet with a curvateoutline and curvate incisions. FIG. 2e shows a square sheet formed withthree straight incisions at angles of 45° to the sides of the square.FIG. 2f shows a plaything which resembles a kite, and FIG. 2g shows asquare sheet with a central excision bounded by four curves.

[0030]FIG. 3a shows a plaything which has a more complex configurationthan the playthings which are shown in FIGS. 2a to 2 g. It can be foldedthrough a cycle of folding steps provided that the first fold iseffected about hinge line 12 or hinge line 13.

[0031]FIG. 3b shows a plaything which has a single incision 32, as withthe embodiment of FIG. 1c, and excisions 33, 34, 35 and 36 such thatzone 28 of the plaything of FIG. 3b simulates a “smiling” face.

[0032]FIG. 3c shows another plaything which has a configuration which isslightly more complex than the playthings which are shown in FIGS. 2a to2 g. It can be folded through a specific cycle of folding steps whereasmany different cycles are possible. For inversion of the plaything ofFIG. 3c, folding can be effected about the following hinge lines insequence:—

[0033] a) hinge line 12,

[0034] b) hinge line 11,

[0035] c) hinge line 13,

[0036] d) hinge line 10,

[0037] e) hinge line 12,

[0038] f) hinge line 11,

[0039] g) hinge line 13, and

[0040] h) hinge line 10.

[0041] In each of the embodiments of FIGS. 2a to 2 g and FIGS. 3a to 3c, a plaything has two pairs of parallel interrupted fold lines and isconstituted by a single sheet of material divided into eight zones 22 to29, each of which is connected by two hinge portions to two other zones.The single sheet of material is normally a thin sheet of, for example,card, but may be a sheet having a significant thickness, for example, asheet of wood.

[0042] Turning next to FIGS. 4a to 4 h, these show a folding cycle forthe plaything of FIG. 1a. FIG. 4a shows the initial unfolded conditionof the sheet in which the various zones of the sheet can be consideredas facing upwardly and are shown unshaded. In the other figures, one ormore of the zones face downwardly and are shown shaded.

[0043] The first folding step consists of a fold about hinge line 12such that the top edge of the sheet is moved downwardly through 180°about the axis of hinge line 12 into contact with the rear of the sheet.This folding step involves inversion of zones 22, 23 and 24 so that partof the rear of zone 23 is visible from above and is indicated as 23R inFIG. 4b.

[0044] The second folding step starts with the plaything as shown inFIG. 4b and consists of a fold about hinge line 13 such that the bottomedge of the sheet is moved downwardly through 180° about the axis ofhinge line 13 into contact with the rear of the sheet. This folding stepinvolves inversion of zones 27, 28 and 29 so that part of the rear ofzone 28 is visible from above and is indicated as 28R in FIG. 4c.

[0045] The third folding step starts with the plaything as shown in FIG.4c and involves folding of zone 26 about hinge line 11 so as to obtainthe condition shown in FIG. 4d.

[0046] The fourth folding step starts from the condition shown in FIG.4d and involves folding of zone 25 about hinge line 10 to obtain thecondition shown in FIG. 4e. The arrangement may be such that anidentifiable image is shown in this condition of the plaything.

[0047] The fifth folding step starts from the condition shown in FIG. 4eand involves a second folding about hinge line 12 to obtain thecondition shown in FIG. 4f.

[0048] The sixth folding step starts from the condition shown in FIG. 4fand involves a second folding about hinge line 13 to obtain thecondition shown in FIG. 4g. The arrangement may be such that anotheridentifiable image is shown in this condition of the plaything.

[0049] The seventh folding step starts from the condition shown in FIG.4g and involves a second folding about hinge line 11 to obtain thecondition shown in FIG. 4h, in which the original image starts toreappear.

[0050] The eighth and final step starts from the condition shown in FIG.4h and involves a second folding about hinge line 10 to obtain thecondition shown in FIG. 4a.

[0051] It is to be noted that all eight of the folding steps areeffected in the same direction and that two folding operations areeffected about each hinge line 10, 11, 12, 13. The plaything is thussimple to operate such that a child (or adult) can gain significantpleasure from watching the changes in the displayed image.

[0052] Although detailed reference has been made above to a foldingcycle in which the first step involves folding about hinge line 12, itis to be appreciated that the first folding step in the cycle may beabout any one of the fold lines. Such freedom of use is afforded witheach of the embodiments described above apart from the embodiments ofFIGS. 3a and 3 c. It is also to be noted that, although specificreference has been made to a cycle of eight steps, the user may carryout cycles of more than eight steps in many different orders.

1. A plaything formed from a single sheet of material having a firstpair of parallel interrupted hinge lines afforded by spaced hingeportions, and a second pair of parallel interrupted hinge lines affordedby spaced hinge portions, the second pair of parallel interrupted hingelines being at right angles to the first pair of parallel interruptedhinge lines, and the sheet being so cut as to permit folding of thesheet about each of the hinge lines.
 2. A plaything as claimed in claim1, which can be inverted and returned to its original condition byfolding of the sheet twice about each of the fold lines.
 3. A playthingas claimed in claim 1, in which the sheet is so cut as to divide it intoeight zones each of which is connected by hinge portions to two otherzones.
 4. A plaything as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, inwhich cutting of the sheet is effected by forming incisions in thesheet.
 5. A plaything as claimed in claim 4, in which the incisionsextend to points of intersection of the hinge portions.
 6. A playthingas claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, in which cutting of the sheet iseffected by forming an excision in the sheet.
 7. A plaything as claimedin claim 1, in which the hinge portions extend outwardly from the pointsof intersection of the hinge lines.
 8. A plaything as claimed in any oneof the preceding claims, in which an image is provided on one side ofthe sheet and in which portions of a second image are provided on theother side of the sheet such that, during folding of the plaything, acondition can be obtained in which said second image is displayed.
 9. Aplaything as claimed in claim 8, in which portions of a third image areprovided on the other side of the sheet such that, during folding of theplaything, a condition can be obtained in which said third image isdisplayed.